The original “X-Files” was a game-changing hit when it premiered in 1993. Not only did it help establish then-fledgling Fox as a network — it redefined, with mix serialized and procedural storytelling and darker take on genre themes, television drama.

But would it have worked today?

The current revival of the Chris Carter series sees the return of former FBI agents Mulder (David Duchovny) and Scully (Gillian Anderson), but in a much more tightly-wrapped packaged than the original — a six-episode miniseries compared to a first season of 24 episodes.

In the 2015-16 TV season, when the new “X-Files” was greenlighted, 24-episode seasons were hard to come by.

The season’s breakout drama hits, NBC’s “Blindspot” and CBS’ “Limitless,” were originally picked up for 13 episodes, and only earned their back nine episodes after they proved they had an audience. “Empire,” the biggest broadcast hit in recent years, and also a Fox show, aired only 12 episodes in its first season. A larger Season 2 is only slated for 18 episodes

Other recent shows with intricate central mythologies proved too much for audiences, who didn’t bother to tune in. Fox’s “Almost Human” and “Minority Report” and ABC’s “The Whispers” were all recent victims of quick cancellations and perhaps too-convoluted mythologies.

But in a way, it’s hard to quantify how the original “X-Files” might have fared in today’s TV landscape since the show itself was such an influence on what succeeds today.

“It’s kind of hard to imagine a current landscape without having ‘The X-Files’ in the past,” writer and producer Glen Mazzara told TheWrap. “I think ‘The X-Files’ is the most influential show of the past 20 years on TV developments. ‘X-Files’ introduced an interesting mythology that got teased out over the course of the entire series and yet still had an episodic nature to it.” A procedural with an overarching mythology was “the holy grail” of TV development at the time. “How do you keep fans engaged and yet make sure it’s not too serialized? It’s really the forerunner of a lot of shows.”

Mazzarra is currently in production on “Damien” for A&E, which will run 10 episodes its first season. It was originally conceived as a six-episode event series for Lifetime, A&E’s sister network.

“I see a lot of that model,” said Mazzara. “That comes from AMC’s launch of ‘The Walking Dead’ Season 1. That was six episodes, it was attention-grabbing and then the order was expanded to 13 for the second season.”

The quickened pacing of TV shows over the years isn’t lost on those who create it.

“When I did [‘Law & Order: SVU’] in 2000, there would be a scene with characters talking about a case, and then it would cut to another scene with several pages of dialogue, but when I left 11 years later, it was all intercut and much faster, people were finishing each other’s lines in the next scene,” writer and producer Neal Baer told TheWrap.

The trick now is to hook an audience as soon as possible, and the new “X-Files” certainly did that, both by nature of it having a large built-in audience and by laying out a huge mythology arc right in the first episode.

The structure of “The X-Files” reboot hasn’t changed much. The revival series, which just premiered on Fox, will feature book-ending first and last episodes that delve heavily into the show’s central alien mythology, but the middle four episodes are stand-alone monster of the week stories.

Season 1 of “The X-Files” consisted of five mythology episodes and 19 stand-alone case episodes.

Of course, twenty-four new episodes of “The X-Files” in 2016 was never on the table.

“Originally we were supposed to do eight and that got scaled back to six because of schedules,” said Carter at the Television Critics Association winter press tour earlier this month. “Eight was doable, six was very doable. Six actually works. You actually get a variety of episodes, with two strong mythology episodes, which I thought were the spine of the show. So I do think six work but eight would have worked too.”

Six episodes not only allowed Carter, Duchovny and Anderson all to return, even with their busy schedules otherwise, but it’s also in keeping with the shorter, tighter season model, which is proving to be successful.

The onset of streaming platforms has also affected how audiences watch TV. A slower-moving show like the original Netflix’s “Jessica Jones” or “House of Cards” can afford to move slowly, if the 13 or 24 episode season can be consumed all at once over one weekend, instead of being fed to the audience one hour a week.

“The fact that everything is available in bulk now, has trained us to watch TV in a different way,” said Baer. “‘The Wire’ unfolded pretty slowly each season, but that was the first show where I heard people say, ‘I’m going to watch it all at Christmas.’ Now, we’re just used to it.”

Cable and streaming also tend to cater to a different audience than broadcast networks do.

“If ‘The X-Files’ was being developed today, I think it would have to play on cable,” said Mazzara. “The show really introduced a cinematic quality to TV storytelling… On cable streaming, people sit down, they invest. They will go with a slower tone, they expect a cinematic quality and they want to know a story will pay out down the road, they don’t need the immediate gratification.”

Carter hasn’t specified how many episodes he would like to do if Fox ordered a second serving of the “X-Files” revival, but it’s probably safe to say it won’t be anywhere near 24 episodes.

“The X-Files” airs Mondays at 8/7 c on Fox.

55 First Looks at New and Returning 2016 TV Shows (Exclusive Photos)

"Galavant" (ABC): ABC's quirky musical comedy is back for even more absurdity, with a meta first episode titled "A New Season aka Suck It Cancellation Bear."

“The Bachelor” (ABC): The 20th season of the popular dating reality show sees Ben Higgins, who was rejected by the latest “Bachelorette” Kaitlyn, as the newest single catch fending off and deciding between twenty-one new contestants.

"Teen Wolf" (MTV): Scott and Stiles will have to put aside their differences when MTV's hit series returns for the second half of Season 5. Stiles' dad, the Sheriff, is still in grave danger, and there's tons of new mysteries to solve. BFF drama can wait.

"The Shannara Chronicles" (MTV): The home of "Teen Wolf" dives deep into high fantasy with this adaptation of Terry Brooks' bestselling series of YA novels. Young heroes are tested as the dying Ellcrys tree inflects deadly demons upon the earth.

"Mike and Molly" (CBS): Melissa McCarthy returns for one final season of CBS' hit sitcom. The shortened 13-episode final season was announced by co-star Rondi Reeds, prompting McCarthy to share via Twitter that she too was "shocked and heartbroken" upon learning of the cancellation.

“Shades of Blue” (NBC): Jennifer Lopez makes a rare return to scripted television in this event series, also starring Ray Liotta, about a group of tough Brooklyn cops who are not afraid to sometimes step outside the confines of the law in order to protect their city.

"Shameless" (Showtime): Frank discovers religion on Season 6 of Showtime's popular dark family dramedy following the Gallaghers. The new season finds the scrappy family struggling with change and the possibility of growing apart.

"Shadowhunters" (ABC Family): Cassandra Clare's bestselling YA novels get a makeover adaptation in this series about Clary Fray, who discovers she's destined to be a protector of the human race from demons that lurk around every corner.

"Second Chance" (Fox): Formerly known as "The Frankenstein Code," then "Lookinglass," Fox's newest science fiction drama is about a morally corrupt cop who's brought back to life decades later in a newer, younger, stronger body - and the consequences of that.

"DC's Legends of Tomorrow" (The CW): Heroes and villains of "Arrow" and "The Flash" team up to travel through time and take down an immortal villain, Vandal Savage, who just may conquer the planet should they fail in their mission.

"The 100" (The CW): The third season of the post-apocalyptic drama picks up three months after the catastrophic events of the Season 2 finale. Clarke is on the run and in danger, and Bellamy is trying to hold things together back at Camp Jaha. And a certain AI is still out there somewhere with a warhead that could destroy what's left of humanity.

“Baskets” (FX): Zach Galifianakis stars in this new comedy as Chip Baskets, who sets out to conquer his dream of becoming a professional clown. Flunking out of a prestigious Paris clown school, Chip finds himself working at a local rodeo in Bakersfield, CA instead.

"The X-Files" (Fox): Mulder and Scully are back to give it one last shot at solving the mystery of aliens and government cover-ups. But they'll have time for a side case or two, as most episodes of the revival event series will feature standalone stories.

"The Fosters" (ABC Family): The third season of the acclaimed blended family series sees everyone settling into a new dynamic now that Callie is permanently adopted, while medical problems, secrets and relationship drama threaten everyone's happiness.

“Suits” (USA): The second half of Season 5 returns to see the repurcussions of Mike behind bars, five seasons of lies and deception finally caught up to him. But don’t expect the mystery of who turned him in to be solved right away. The Patrick J. Adams-led drama has already been renewed for a sixth season.

“The People v O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story” (FX): Ryan Murphy takes his anthology series prowess to dramatically retell the Trial of the Century, following the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and subsequent trial of former NFL star O.J. Simpson. Cuba Gooding Jr. plays Simpson, with Sarah Paulson, John Travolta, David Schwimmer and more starring.

"11/22/63" (Hulu): A schoolteacher, Jake Epping, discovers he can travel back in time - and decides to try to stop the JFK assassination. The 10-hour adaptation of Stephen King novel stars James Franco.

"Vikings" (History): The cable network bolstered its hit action series, adding four episodes to the fourth season of the Travis Fimmel-led show. The first 10 episodes air in February, with another 10 set for later in 2016.

“Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders” (CBS): The latest “Criminal Minds” series follows the International Repsonse Unit, the FBI division which is tasked with solving crimes and coming to the rescue of Americans who find themselves in danger while abroad.

“Of Kings and Prophets” (ABC): The Ray Winstone drama is described as an epic biblical saga of faith, ambition and betrayal as told through the eyes of the battle-weary King Saul, the resentful prophet Samuel and the resourceful young shepherd David — all on a collision course with destiny that will change the world.

"Underground" (WGN America): The 10-part miniseries is described as a pulse-pounding journey with revolutionaries of the Underground Railroad and tells the unflinching story of a group of courageous men and women who band together for the fight of their lives – for their families, their future and their freedom.

(Premieres Wednesday, Mar. 9)

WGN America

"The Catch" (ABC): ABC’s latest Shondaland drama stars Mireille Enos as a fraud expert who finds herself being conned, by her own fiance, who’s been working with his real lover in stealing all her money. This one underwent a bit of a makeover with the recasting of two of its leads. Peter Krause and Sonya Walger replaced Damon Dayoub and Bethany Joy Lenz, respectively.

"Hap and Leonard" (Sundance TV): Based on the series of stories by Joe Lansdale, this anthology series follows the adventures of best friends Hap Collins and Leonard Pine. The two are chronically single, perpetually broke and guided by an old fashioned sense of honor and morality – but the similarities end there.

"Hunters" (Syfy): Based on Whitley Strieber’s best-selling novel "Alien Hunter," Syfy's latest comes from "Walking Dead's" Gale Ann Hurd and follows an FBI agent on the trail of a shadowy terrorist organization, who may or may not be from this world.

"12 Monkeys" (Syfy): Cole and Cassie do more time traveling and end up in the 1940s for at least some amount of time in Season 2 of Syfy's adaptation of the film of the same name - though the series is decidedly its own thing at this point.

"Containment" (The CW): "The Vampire Diaries" and "The Originals" showrunner Julie Plec adds another project to her plate with this drama set in the immediate aftermath of a catastrophic viral outbreak.